What to Do When Employees Miss Punch in Biometric Attendance?

When it comes to workforce management, attendance is one of the most crucial aspects. Businesses of all sizes require accurate clock-in and clock-out data for the proper foundation of payroll processing.  A single missed punch can create chaos in salary calculations, overtime approvals, and compliance reporting. 

Imagine this: An employee works an entire day, but forgets to punch in. HR has no official record of their presence. During payroll, the system marks it as an absent day. Later, the employee disputes it with proof like emails or task updates of that particular period to show they were indeed working. The HR team now has to manually investigate, adjust records, and justify changes or make adjustments to the next month’s salary by adding one or two days which was left out in the current pay cycle. The result? Wasted time, confusion, and frustration on both ends.

This is why managing missed punches in biometric attendance is so important. In this blog, we’ll break down:

Table of Contents

What does a “missed punch” actually mean? 

• Common reasons for employees missing attendance

• The “missed attendance” consequences that payroll and HR teams face

• What organisations can do when employees miss a punch?

• How to prevent missed clock-ins with better systems?

• Why DigiSME offers the ideal solution

What Does a Missed Punch in Biometric Attendance Mean?

A missed punch is when an employee enters the office without clocking in and exits the office without marking the day’s attendance. In workplaces where technology is used, biometric systems do not record their entry or exit, creating gaps in attendance data.  

For example: 

• If Ravi rushes into the office at 9:15 AM without scanning his fingerprint, the system shows him as absent for the day.

• If Priya clocks in at 8:00 AM but forgets to clock out at 6:00 PM, the system may show her as still inside the office or not count her work hours at all.

HR will be confused when they run payroll at the end of the month in both of these situations.

Why Do Employees Miss Punches?

Missed punches are not always intentional. They usually fall into three categories: human error, system issues, and external influences.

1. Human Error

The most common reason for human error is forgetfulness. There are several instances in which an employee can forget to clock in. Someone who is coming late might rush in, and due to stress, marking the attendance will be the last thing that will be in their mind. In organizations with rotational shifts, employees often forget or punch in at the wrong time.

From HR’s perspective, this is frustrating. Even though the employee worked, the attendance records remain incomplete.

In our analysis across 200+ companies, 70% of missed punches were due to human error, 20% due to system glitches, and 10% due to external influences .

2. System Issues

The fact is that no technology is perfect, and there is a high probability of biometric systems falling short in some instances. Faulty fingerprint or face recognition sensors may not verify the employee’s clock-in, and it will create gaps in attendance data. Software glitches and syncing delays are technical issues that may occur once in a while.  Organisations using low-quality hardware will not capture attendance accurately.  It will make employees look like they’ve missed marking attendance even if they didn’t.

3. External Influences

Sometimes, both professionals and systems will not have control technology. Power failure in the workplace or internet outage prevents attendance data from syncing to cloud storage. Other factors, like improper configuration of access restrictions, also disrupt accurate data collection and generate attendance gaps.

What to Do When Employees Miss Marking Attendance?

Organisations can develop a structured approach to handle such cases, and the following steps will be of great assistance.

1. Write a Clear Attendance Policy  

A clear attendance policy will clearly explain the process to employees and guide employers to manage the workflow in a streamlined manner. Every company should have a documented policy that explains the below information.   

• Specify situations that qualify as a missed clock-in or clock-out.  

• Highlight the steps employees must follow to notify HR when a missed punch occurs.  

• Explain how HR will use to verify, approve, and update attendance records.  

• Educated users about the actions that may be taken if an employee fails to clock in or out frequently.   

This avoids confusion. Employees know their responsibilities, and HR has a clear protocol to follow.  

 2. Allow Adjustments  

Adjusting the attendance records is very crucial. The time correction process depends on the attendance systems used in the organization. Some organizations also support the employees to raise adjustments by leaving reasons for the missed punch in the biometric attendance. Most modern HR software provides an option for employees to raise an attendance regularisation request for attendance correction.   

For example:  

• Employee submits a missed punch request with the reason (e.g., “system error,” “forgot to punch in”) via software   

• The reporting manager approves or rejects it in the app.   

• HR updates the attendance records accordingly.  

• This balances fairness for employees and accountability for HR.  

Also, Read Why Companies Should Use an Attendance Management System?

3. Investigate and Resolve Issues  

Missed punches should not always be brushed off. It is important to find the root cause, and HR needs to analyse trends. Analyse the previous attendance records to identify the trends of an individual person, a team, or a department.    

Is the same employee missing punches repeatedly?  

Is it happening in one specific department?  

Are system errors causing widespread issues?  

This investigation helps HR identify root causes and fix them. Whether it’s through employee awareness, training, or upgrading the system.

How to Prevent Missed Clock-ins?

Organisations can prevent missed clock-ins instead of considering manual methods to adjust attendance data. Some strategies that might help are specified below.  

1. Use Face Recognition Systems

Face recognition is a more reliable biometric system than fingerprint scanners. The system also prevents buddy punching – an employee clocking in for another.   

Check the blog Top Reasons to Choose Face Recognition Systems

2. Adopt Mobile Attendance App

Mobile-based attendance solutions with features like geo-fencing, real-time data sync, and live alerts will be effective. While geo-fencing allows employees to clock in only within the office location, live notifications will be sent to staff a few minutes before the shift time as a reminder. 

3. Provide Training for Employees

Sometimes, employees don’t use the biometric system correctly. A short training session on how to use the device or mobile app can reduce errors.  

4. Regular System Maintenance

HR should coordinate with the IT team to:  

Check hardware regularly  

Update software patches  

Ensure power backup and internet reliability

Why DigiSME is the Ideal Choice?

Missed punches can frustrate both employees and HR teams. That’s where DigiSME HRMS comes in. Our solution is designed to prevent and manage attendance issues seamlessly.  

With DigiSME, you get:  

• Face recognition Technology  

• Mobile app for attendance with reminders  

• Geo-fencing and GPS-based clock-ins  

• Self-service portal for missed punch corrections  

• Payroll integration  

• Detailed reports for HR  

This means no more salary disputes, manual headaches. Only a smoother experience for employees and HR alike.

Case Study 1 – IT Services Firm (Chennai) 

An IT services company in Chennai struggled to reduce missed punches and attendance disputes. Employees forgot to clock in during rush hours, which resulted in payroll errors and constant back-and-forth with HR. After implementing DigiSME HRMS, the company leveraged features like face recognition and mobile reminders. Within just a few months, attendance disputes dropped by 90%, saving HR teams countless hours and ensuring employees received accurate salaries on time. This boosted trust between staff and HR while making payroll processing smoother and more transparent.  

Case Study 2 – Manufacturing Company (1,200 Employees) 

A mid-sized manufacturing company with a workforce of 1,200 faced a high volume of payroll disputes, nearly 60 every month, due to missed or incorrect punches. These errors delayed salary processing and created dissatisfaction among workers. With DigiSME HRMS, the company adopted geo-fenced mobile attendance and an easy self-service portal for corrections. As a result, payroll disputes were reduced to fewer than 5 per month. This dramatic improvement not only streamlined HR operations but also improved employee morale and trust, showing how powerful modern attendance systems can be in a large-scale workforce environment.  

Wrapping Up   

Missed punches in biometric attendance may look like a small issue, but they can snowball into payroll errors, employee dissatisfaction, and HR stress. By creating a clear policy, allowing manual adjustments, investigating issues, and upgrading to modern attendance systems, organizations can handle them effectively.  

With DigiSME’s advanced HRMS, companies can not only resolve missed punches quickly but also prevent them altogether. The result? Accurate payroll, happier employees, and a stress-free HR department.